Hack and Slash

I got this game on my birthday and initially I was going to return it for a different game. But for whatever reason I opened it one day and played it. This game is good, flashback to Golden Ax or Gauntlet add in state of the art graphics, surround sound carnage, and relentless hordes of Orcs and you have a great if not short game.

The game encompasses the first two movies of the trilogy. You can play as Aragon, Legolas, or that dwarf guy. As you can tell I usually stick to the first two. The game is pure hack and slash gameplay, you kill a group of orcs, move forward a little bit and kill another group of orcs. If that sounds repetitive, throw in a lot of great music straight from the movies and ferocious sound effects. The battle scenes integrate seamlessly with the cutscenes and movie footage.

The graphics has to be seen to be appreciated. Battles are pure medieval carnage, dozens of orcs running amok, flaming arrows, fireballs, orcs catching on fire, the details of Tolkien warfare is immense. It really shows off the PS2's capability quite nicely.

Practice makes perfect if you get stuck on a level. The game is short but there are plenty of unlockables, such as behind the scenes footage and commentary and secret levels.

If you can accept this game for what it is, you'll enjoy it. Not every game was meant to be an 80 hour epic, most gamers don't have that type of commitment and not all games warrant it. But as a home arcade type adventure game, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is flawless/